Airlines and airports invest in digitalization to empower a new generation of travel
The "SITA 2023 Air Transport Industry IT Insights" report released today shows that IT spending by airports and airlines has increased year by year since 2020, and is expected to reach US$10.8 billion and US$34.5 billion respectively in 2023, of which more than two-thirds of respondents expect growth momentum to continue into 2024. Benefiting from the increase in travel demand, airport IT spending as a proportion of revenue has also increased in 2022 and 2023, indicating that technology will play an important role in the new generation of travel experience.
Key investment priorities for airline industry CIOs include biometric-enabled passenger journeys, leveraging data to improve operational efficiency, and green solutions that optimize energy and emissions.
From seamless experience to optimized operations
Airlines and airports have made great strides in optimizing the passenger experience. In 2023, more than half of the airlines and airports surveyed have deployed IT technology to improve the efficiency of check-in, baggage tagging and boarding. Biometric technology is also increasingly used to reduce queues at airports, with 70% of airlines expecting to deploy biometric ID management by 2026 and 90% of airports planning to invest in major projects or research and development in this area.
CIOs are looking to complement cutting-edge passenger processing technology with innovative solutions. To improve efficiency, strengthen operations from irregular flights, and optimize passenger and employee processes, CIOs are looking to adopt future-oriented IT tools, such as BI (business intelligence is the largest area of airline technology investment), AI (artificial intelligence) ) and data sharing.
BI is the largest technology investment area for airlines in the next three years, and 73% of the airlines surveyed will invest in major projects. Nearly two-thirds of airports and airlines surveyed are collecting and integrating data. With the rise of generative AI, the industry is planning to use AI and machine learning to organize and analyze data to help improve operational efficiency. With the majority of industry players surveyed agreeing that "using data to improve operational efficiency" is a business challenge to some extent, 97% of airlines and 82% of airports plan to invest in AI in 2026.
SITA CEO David Lavorel said: "With passenger demand fully recovering, domestic travel has even surpassed pre-pandemic levels in some areas, with airlines and airports learning from past irregular flights and congestion. Advanced data Sharing and analysis tools will enable collaboration among stakeholders to identify opportunities to improve efficiency and streamline operations. Solutions such as Airport Comprehensive Management and Passenger Processing BI provide airports and airlines with real-time insights into asset and passenger flow management, enabling flexible, Management objectives for collaboratively responding to non-normal events."
Intelligent IT helps the industry move towards sustainable development
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Sustainability is also high on the agenda, and with industry carbon reduction milestones and emissions regulations in place, CIOs are setting their sights on technology solutions that can deliver concrete emissions reductions.
In 2026, more than 90% of airlines plan to deploy IT to improve flight operations and aircraft turnover efficiency. More than half of them have already used IT to optimize the taxiing, takeoff/landing and cruise stages of the aircraft. Almost all airlines plan to achieve this by 2026. this goal.
For airports, building and energy management systems are key priorities in providing a unified view of carbon emissions and potential reduction areas. Investment in energy management systems* will be the fastest growing practice among all airport sustainability plans, with more than half of airport plans set to achieve this goal by 2026.
"The industry is moving ambitiously towards the goal of net-zero carbon by 2050. It is very encouraging that airlines and airports are actively deploying advanced technology tools to accurately monitor and optimize energy consumption and carbon emissions." Lavorel added.
The "SITA 2023 Air Transport IT Insights" study was conducted from August to November 2023. More than 250 airline and airport executives share their views and insights. The airlines and airports they represent account for a quarter of the world's passenger traffic.